


The Esproc Program

by Rosalinawysteria92



Series: Teddy Citil- Lawyer of the supposedly deceased. [1]
Category: Rosalinawysteria92, Unknown.Unown
Genre: Death, Funeral, Gen, Gore, Low-key love story, Undead, Zombie, ghost - Freeform, like very very low-key
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-22
Updated: 2018-11-21
Packaged: 2019-08-05 16:24:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 27
Words: 10,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16371038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosalinawysteria92/pseuds/Rosalinawysteria92
Summary: Teddy Citil didn't believe his old rival Dr Esproc would go so far as to bring back the dead.You could say he was Dead Wrong.The young lawyer has to deal with the wills of the undead, specifically Funeral Director; Phil Larenov, Pathologist; Stephano Latipsoh, and Grave Digger; Grant Evarg.Understanding the fact that all three men are probably out for blood on the orders of Dr Esproc, Teddy Citil must appease the undead before they become trapped in their decaying bodies forever.





	1. And So I Die.

Chapter One-- And So I Die

Phil Larenov lived a dreary life; that was a commonly known fact. The funeral director worked only when his services were needed, mostly when people died-- only when people died. At this point he was used to seeing emotional people pass by him, and had grown an immunity to them.

12 minutes until death. 

He could have never known that his clockwork existence might end at the hands of a griever.

10 minutes until death.

Phil lifted a book from the coffee table and began to forlornly flip through the pages. He was expecting a visitor-- the husband of a recently deceased woman. 

8 minutes until death.

It was only a moment before a knock sounded at the door-- a harsh knock. Phil stood up, put down his novel and slowly walked towards the door, turning the handle.

7 minutes until death.

A bulky man stood in the doorway, Phil ushered him inside, and the two sat across from eachother at the couch.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Phil began, "I'm sure Maria was a lovely woman."

5 minutes until death.

"Yes, well, you would know that, Mr. Larenov," the man muttered, "you were very fond of Maria, weren't you?"

Phil couldn't help but be intimidated by the other man. His thin frame trembled, "I..." he was at a loss, "I suppose I was.... b-but it was nothing personal, we hadn't talked since high school!"

"The letters." The man hissed.

3 minutes until death.

"You wrote her letters every month, I found them in her closet," the man growled.

"I did--" Phil squeaked when he noticed the man pull a gun from his coat.

"If you love my wife so much, go be with her." The man reached across the coffee table towards a shaking Phil and latched onto his wrist.

1 minute until death.

Phil felt cold metal touch his forehead and he whimpered, "Did you read the letters?!" He cried.

"No need," the man snarled, "you shouldn't be sending a married woman love letters!"

"They aren't love letters!" Phil exclaimed, "They're---"

Bang.

Phil's limp body hit the floor. A pool of blood dyed the carpet red as it dribbled from the poor man's head. 

 

Death.


	2. Stars in the Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not everyone has a grudge held against them that results in their death.
> 
> An accident is just as acceptable.

Chapter Two-- Stars in the Day

Grant Evarg and his stupid life. This man was clearly nowhere near as uptight as Phil. A dorky millennial with no real purpose in life, he had turned to the not-so-wonderful job of a gravedigger.

A job that really would kill him-- in both the emotional and physical sense.

12 minutes until death.

Grant mumbled to himself as he sat in the cemetery. His assistant, Brandon, was late- again- and Grant was stuck out in the cold, all alone.

10 minutes until death. 

He rubbed his hands together to attain some kind of warmth, not getting anywhere with this attempt.

He was slightly nervous, and he would only admit it to himself.

He was glad that Brandon was late again, Grant knew that there was always a 50/50 chance that the other man would show up drunk and delusional.

7 minutes until death.

He jumped when he heard the steady hum of an car pulling up behind him.

The door slammed and the older man jumped out. He teetered for a moment, and wobbled towards Grant.

3 minutes until death.

"Hi Brandon." Grant greeted, in a way that could be taken as harsh.

"Sup Kid!?" Brandon yelled, pulling the younger man into a tight hug.

Grant recalled the 50/50 chance, Brandon was definitely drunk and delusional.

2 minutes until death.

"Brandon, please let go of me." Grant pleaded, "we need to work."

Brandon released Grant and picked up one of the shovels, haphazardly swinging it around.

Grant ducked as it whizzed past his head, "Please put the shovel down," he sighed.

"Down!!" The drunk man exclaimed, raising the shovel high in the air, "down it is!!"

Grant felt a shock go down his spine at the shovel swung down hard onto his head.

He swayed dizzily for a moment before collapsing completely. 

He could hear Brandon talking, but it was all nonsense to him.

He groaned and his vision began to fade out.

Death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Death of Grant Evarg.
> 
> It couldn't really be Brandon's fault, honestly.
> 
> Goodbye until next chapter-- Rosalinawysteria92.


	3. Frozen Mind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The death of Stephano Latipsoh.
> 
> This chapter is considerably more dark, but is not violent.  
> If needles or drugging triggers you, there will be a summary at the bottom at the chapter.
> 
> The chapter takes place chronologically before the rest.

Chapter Three-- Frozen Mind

Stephano Latipsoh probably wasn't in the best occupation for his situation. The Pathologist's younger sister, Maria Latipsoh, had recently dropped dead of a heart attack, and of course Stephano was the one to do her autopsy.

So he was grieving.

19 minutes until death.

Stephano was lucky enough to work under the esteemed Dr Armando Esproc. As much as he liked his boss, he could tell there was something shifty going on.

15 minutes until death.

Stephano was pulled from his thoughts when his phone received a text, he whipped it out of his pocket.

'Latipsoh, room 17 asap.'

The text was from Dr Esproc. Stephano didn't stop to ponder what Esproc wanted him for.

13 minutes until death.

Stephano grabbed his clipboard and pulled on his labcoat, hurriedly rushing into the hallway.

Of all the places he had to go, Stephano didn't care to walk to room 17-- considering he was on the fourth floor of the institute, and he was wanted on the first.

8 minutes until death.

The institute didn't have elevators, so it took Stephano a long while to get to the correct room.

He scanned his key card on the door, and heard the distinct click as it unlocked.

Pushing the door open, he could see Dr Esproc standing with his tablet, swiping things on the screen, occasionally stopping to type a blurb.

 

6 minutes until death.

"Dr Esproc?" Stephano called.

Esproc didn't turn, only acknowledging Stephano with a gesture to come closer.

Stephano shut the door and walked forward.

"I've had a break through," he breathed.

"Sir?" Stephano questioned.

5 minutes until death.

Esproc placed his tablet on the desk, picking up a cloth.

He held it up to Stephano, who eyed it warily.

He suddenly latched on to Stephano's labcoat and pulled him closer.

"Sir?!" Stephano cried before the cloth was thrust into his face. He involuntary breathed in the chemicals coating the cloth and everything went blurry.

4 minutes until death.

Esproc sat the barely-conscious Stephano in a chair, tying the cloth around his mouth.

"I would've told you this without drugging you," he started, "but I didn't think you'd be a voluntary subject."

Stephano groaned, breathing in more of the chemical.

"See, I've found a way to stimulate a dead brain enough that it will return to life," he cackled, "it worked on mice."

1 minute until death.

Esproc stepped towards Stephano, pulling a syringe from his coat pocket.

"You'll be my first human experiment."

He jabbed the syringe into Stephano's neck and the man's head lolled.

Death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephano is grieving as his sister Maria (see chapter one) has died.  
> He works for dr Esproc, who texts him to come to room 17. Stephano goes, only for Esproc to drug him and explain that he has found a way to bring back the dead, and that Stephano will be his first human subject. He injects Stephano with a serum and Stephano dies.


	4. The Program

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The process of bringing someone back can be daunting.
> 
> \- this chapter deals with operation. If you do not wish to read this part, there is a line of **** that signals where it is safe to start reading.
> 
> \- Teddy Citil: Lawyer of the deceased and all related characters belong to me.

Chapter Four-- The Program.

Armando Esproc wasn't inherently evil-- you could say he was inordinately troubled.

The man of fifty-seven years had worked in the field of pathology since he was twenty-two, and had since had many breakthroughs, but none as huge as his most recent.

He had found a way to revive the dead. He had of course tested his theory on pests such as mice and rats, but he was about to finally have the chance to experiment on a human subject.

Stephano Latipsoh had been a fool to trust his boss. Esproc had killed the man with a poison, and had locked both Stephano and himself in the lab.

Esproc laid out the tools he would need for the experiment. He'd have to operate on Stephano, albeit, he wasn't as versed in practical surgery as he was in autopsies.

He could probably pull it off, and if not-- no big deal, Stephano was already dead anyway.

Stephano was laid peacefully on the operating table, he was still warm, but he was pale from the poison. 

Esproc put on sterile gloves, and set to work, making small incisions and proceeding on his way to accessing Stephano's brain.

 

*****end of possible trigger*******

It was a long and tedious process, but Esproc finally managed to implant a small electronic receptor into Stephano.

He then worked at closing the hole he had made in Stephano's skull, and stitched the incisions shut.

He retrieved a thin, slightly fuzzy plate, to which two straps were attached. He strapped the contraption to Stephano's chest, the plate going over his heart. 

He tapped the electronic screen on the smooth side of the plate and it lit up, displaying an array of buttons.

Esproc selected several and the plate began to make a wireless connection to the gizmo in Stephano's brain. 

Esproc clicked another button and Stephano's body seized, the button again, again a seize.

That's when Stephano gave a raspy breath, then he started coughing.

Esproc smiled at his successful experiment. Stephano's eyes flickered open, and he continued coughing, but his breath was becoming more steady.

He groaned when his eyes focused on Esproc, "You...."

He pushed himself up shakily, and gasped when the electronic plate buzzed in protest, still doing its precarious work.

"Am I..." he began, "alive??"

Esproc nodded, "and doing fine. Do not remove the contraption on your test without my explicit permission, or your body will go into shock."

"You killed me!" Stephano accused, "Why should I--" he broke into a coughing fit.

A thin line of blood dripped from Stephano's mouth, much to his dismay, "what is this...?"

"A side effect," Esproc grabbed a towel and handed it to Stephano, "of both the poison that you died from--"

"That you murdered me with," Stephano interjected.

"Yes, and the procedure used to bring to back to life. I brought you back, so you owe me, and I need you to do a few jobs."

"Like what?"

"Picking two others to work with, specifically two who died recently, and--"

"Do you have anyone particular in mind?" Stephano interrupted again.

"A few," Esproc sighed, "and I also want to to trail a certain important person."

"Who exactly?" Stephano questioned, "and give me one good reason why I shouldn't report you?!"

"A lawyer named Edward Citil; he goes by Teddy, and the reason you won't report me is that I'm still your boss, and nobody would believe you anyway. If you do what I want you to, I'll consider letting you go back to your family, and I'll start working on a way to bring people who have already begun decaying-- such as your sister-- back to life."

Stephano paused for a moment, "Fine."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- Rosalinawysteria92


	5. Rewrite Equation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teddy Citil is having a hard time dealing with the new homicide cases.
> 
> It doesn't help when he recieves several startling text messages.

Chapter Five-- Rewrite Equation

Edward "Teddy" Citil could not have predicted the strange events that would come with his most recent clients. 

First came the Larenov family, a heartbroken mother grieving for her son, Phillip. Then came Brandon Knuro; the town drunk, trying to turn himself in for murdering Grant Evarg, who had been found dead in the local church's cemetery.

The middle-aged man sat at his desk in his cramped office, scribbling down blurbs on his clipboard. 

He sighed, getting increasingly frustrated with the recent cases.

Brandon Knuro was an easy one, he had already confessed. All that was left to do was a final check of the body for evidence, and the man's fate would be easily decided in a court of law.

The Phillip Larenov case was considerably more difficult, with no witnesses or suspects, it was almost a lost cause, but Teddy was sure that in due time, evidence could be collected and the case solved.

He heard the annoying buzz of his cellphone as it went ballistic, text messages popping up. 

One from the morgue director, another from the police, and one from his boss.

He read them all, they were all the same kind of message.

He grabbed the phone and dialed the number for Phil's mother, he would call Grant's family next.

Phil's mother picked up the phone.

"Hello, this is your lawyer, Edward Citil," he began, "I regret to inform you, but the body of your son has disappeared without a trace."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \-- Teddy Citil, Lawyer of the deceased and all realated assets belong to Rosalinawysteria92/Unown.Unown


	6. Prospect

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The revival of Phillip Larenov

Chapter Six-- Prospect

Phil Larenov didn't expect to come back, but he was back. He could feel something tightly squeezing his chest and prodded at the contraption strapped to him.

A man checked Phil's pulse and Phil squeaked in surprise.

"Am I?" He breathed.

"Alive? Yes." The man affirmed

"But I was--"

"You suffered a fatal shot to the head, but I've managed to repair the injury enough for you to function. I've also brought you back to life by stimulating your body to think it's still alive."

Phil poked the contraption on his chest, the man lightly moved Phil's hand away from it.

"Don't touch it or your body will go into shock and you will die," the man warned.

Phil nodded and then tilted his head, "who are you?"

"Dr Armando Esproc," he introduced himself, grabbing a wadded up white dress shirt from the shelf beside them, "this should fit you fairly well."

Phil took the shirt and put it on. He stared at his hands and sighed, "Now what?"

"Go across the hall, there's a man there who you can socialize with until I finish here," he motioned to another body laying on a table across the room.

Phil shuddered, then he stood up and strode towards the door, closing it behind him and leaving Esproc to his experiment. 

He unlatched the next door and stepped in. 

He immediately noticed a man inside. He had messy black hair and dark tan skin and looked only slightly younger than Phil. He looked up and flagged Phil over.

"Stephano," he greeted, "you?"

"Phil.." Phil was reluctant to answer, "are you dead too?"

"Yes." The man flipped a page in his book, "Crazy isn't it?"

Phil nodded, "Why did he bring us back?"

"He wants us to stalk some lawyer."

"Are we going to do what he wants?" Phil questioned suddenly.

"If we do, we get to go back to our families-- we'll just have been missing for a while."

"I'm pretty sure I'm declared dead." 

"Ask Dr Esproc later."

Suddenly a younger male with light brown hair peeked into the room before coming in and shutting the door.

"Hi, I'm Grant." He greeted awkwardly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phil is pure
> 
> Goodbye-- Rosalinawysteria92


	7. Space Between

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teddy recieves some advice, and a startling revelation.

Chapter Seven-- Space Between

Teddy sighed. He couldn't believe the chaos the new predicament was causing.

He grabbed the papers and set off towards the office of his boss, Mr. McLaine.

He fumbled with the doorknob and grumbled when all of his printouts fluttered to the floor. 

Teddy bent over to gather up the papers as Mr. McLaine opened the office door. Being the good person he was, McLaine also began gathering up sheets.

Teddy stood up, taking the remaining sheets from McLaine.

The two stepped into the office, McLaine taking the swivel seat and Teddy sitting in a chair normally reserved for clients.

"I don't know what to make of the Larenov-Evarg case," he blurted, "If only the bodies hadn't gone missing--" he put his hand over his face in stress and groaned.

"I can have another attorney assigned to the cases." McLaine paused, "but that still won't solve the problem of the missing bodies."

"It's just, without the bodies, there is no new evidence, and without the evidence there can't be a proper trial," Teddy exclaimed, "if we could find the bodies--"

"But we won't find the bodies, Mr. Citil," McLaine affirmed, "you've worked on tougher cases than this, you'll be fine."

"None of the other cases were homicide-- and with stolen evidence." Teddy grumbled pointedly.

"True," McLaine agreed, "but the police will do all they can. You're just the attorney, you need to keep a level head."

"I know," Teddy sighed, "It's just--"

McLaine cut Teddy off, "Edward, you can do this. Now go organize your desk of something-- busy yourself."

Teddy nodded and smiled, standing up to head towards the door. 

He looked back, "thank you." he smiled before shutting the door.

He stared at the floor the entire way back to his office, mind buzzing with ways that he could possibly take either case to court.

He unlocked his office door and slid inside, drawing the blinds and sitting in his swivel chair.

Spinning for a moment, he stared at the contents of his desk, which were strewn every which way.

He stacked some more papers and organized his drawers, which were laden with various office supplies, from paper clips to pens to staple removers.

He grumbled when the phone rang.  
Picking it up, he began with his standard greeting.

"Hello, this is Edward Citil of McLaine and Citil Law, how may I help you?"

He had to laugh to himself when he said that, it sounded like he worked at a fast food joint.

The laughing didn't last long though, the call was from the police.

"Mr. Citil, we reviewed the scene of Larenov's death again."

"And?" Teddy pondered, not knowing what could come next.

"We found a weapon hidden in the kitchen pantry, a gun with fingerprints on it," the officer stopped and then began again, "our number one suspect is your brother, Richard."

The phone fell to the floor with a clunk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \--goodbye, rosalinawysteria92


	8. Sedative

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why does Esproc bear a grudge against Teddy? Grant notices a name pattern and Phil notices a name of a past friend.

Chapter Eight-- Sedative

Grant looked uncomfortably at the other two men before the one reading a book began to speak.

"Stephano." He greeted.

The other man was silent, but then also introduced himself as Phil.

That's when Dr. Esproc entered the room and Grant shifted to sit with the other two men.

"Stephano, Grant, I told you two why I brought you back, Phil, I trust you've asked Stephano?" Esproc started, Phil nodded, "You will be trailing Edward 'Teddy' Citil. He is an attorney working at the McLaine and Citil law firm here in town," he motioned to Grant and Phil, "Edward is also the lawyer for both of your families as of now."

Grant looked at Phil, who shrugged. Apparently this was new information to the older man as well.

"Why do you care so much about this guy?" Stephano pondered; the question that all three had been pondering.

Esproc sighed, "That man cannot be trusted. Several years ago, he was the lawyer who almost had me thrown in prison on false allegations," Esproc emphasized false, as if it really meant true.

"Allegations of... what?" Grant breathed.

"Murder, illegal experimentation." Esproc rolled his eyes.

"So everything you're doing now?" Stephano blurted, the others turned to him in surprise, probably over the whole murder thing, he shrugged nonchalantly, "Did I not mention that he's the one who killed me?"

"And brought you back," hissed Esproc, "Anyways, I want all three of you to take turns trailing Edward Citil. Once you've collected enough information, we'll strike. He fought my genius once, and he'll regret it."

"What will you do to him?" Phil asked rather innocently.

"I will withhold that information from you for the time being," Esproc smiled, "but you can be sure that he won't cross me again."

Grant suddenly started laughing and the others stared in confusion.

"What's so funny?" Esproc demanded, annoyed.

"Your name is E-S-P-R-O-C, right?" Grant weezed, Esproc nodded, "Reverse it and you get Corpse!"

"Your point?" Esproc growled, "Your last name, Evarg, spelled backwards is Grave. Stephano's is hospital.

Phil's face went cloudy for a moment, "hospital backwards is Latipsoh..." he turned to Stephano, "Your last name is Latipsoh. Do you know a Maria?"

"You mean my sister?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \--goodbye, rosalinawysteria92


	9. Reciever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teddy's reaction to the news, and McLaine's resolve.

Chapter Nine-- Reciever

Teddy picked the phone up from the carpeted floor. 

"Mr. Citil, are you still there?" The officer asked, a bit of concern in his voice.

"Y-yes sir, I'm still here," he blurted, "just shaken."

"I suggest that if you don't want to prosecute Richard Citil, you should resign from this case."

Teddy paused, "This case was already difficult, I have no problem with the new development..."

"Very well, we just figured it was imperative that you know all information as soon as it's available."

"Yes, thank you." Teddy hung up, collapsing in his swivel chair in a stressed heap.

He groaned and stood up, opening the door and stalking to the break room. 

Teddy headed straight for the coffee maker, which of course was empty. He sighed, too tired and stressed out to make more, he marched to McLaine's office and knocked harshly on the door.

McLaine opened it and looked surprised to see Teddy back, "Edward, I told you that you could handle this yourself--"

"I just got a call from the police." Teddy grumbled.

McLaine ushered him inside. Teddy could see documents strewn about, and secretly felt bad for interrupting McLaine again.

They sat down and McLaine was the first to speak, "tell me about the phone call."

"My brother apparently murdered Larenov. They found fingerprints."

McLaine's eyes looked at the desk, "You're upset, go home."

"Sir, I--" Teddy protested.

"You aren't being punished, but I can't keep counselling you on this. You need to go home and rest."

"Fine." Teddy relented, "Thank you," he stood up and McLaine smiled.

"Just rest, I'll handle your clients for the afternoon."

Teddy shut the door and tiptoed down the hall, walking out the front entrance of the law firm and heading towards his car.

Climbing into the front seat, he began the short drive home, which felt like an eternity.

He finally reached his house; a plain, grey, house. Unlocking the door, he entered. 

He didn't bother with food, he just crumpled into the couch and fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \-- the chapters look long on my phone, but on my computer they're short, oops :/
> 
> \--goodbye, rosalinawysteria92


	10. The Better

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What is the relationship between Phil and Maria, and what will Esproc do to Teddy if he has his way?

Chapter 10-- The Better

Stephano hadn't expected Phil to ask about Maria. He almost wished he had expected it; maybe he could have prepared. He had knew he recognized the other man from somewhere... then it hit him-- Phil had dated Maria in high school, Stephano had only met him once before the two broke up for unknown reasons.

"I remember you!" The two burst at the same time, both were so surprised by their outburst and went awkwardly silent.

"I see you two have met before." Esproc stated half annoyed, half flat, "We'll deal with those memories later."

All of a sudden, Grant changed the subject, "When should we start following Mr. Citil?"

The three previously dead men turned to focus on Dr Esproc.

"As soon as possible," Esproc explained, "once you have gathered sufficient data on his routine for me to calculate, I will inform you of the next phase of the plan."

He smirked. Stephano shifted uncomfortably and crossed his arms.

"As of now, you three will stay in the lab within room 17, which I will assure remains locked while the institute is in use."

"Wait, the institute?" Phil questioned, "As in the Edmund Institute of Pathology and Forensics? Is that where we are right now??"

Esproc opened his mouth to respond, but Stephano butted in first, "Yes, we are at Edmund's institute."

Esproc glared at Stephano, "you know your place," he hissed, "interrupt one more time and--"

"And what!?" Stephano snarled, "you'll kill me? Well hate to break it to you but you happen to have done that already!"

Grant and Phil looked to eachother and then to the floor, although Grant was getting visibly angry and Phil was getting visibly scared.

"The next phase of your plan is probably to kill Edward Citil!" Stephano continued, "And make him just like you made us!" He wildly motioned to Phil and Grant.

Esproc laughed; a harsh, intimidating laugh, "And what if that is the plan? What will you do then?"

"I'll--" Stephano was interrupted by a very annoyed voice.

"Does it really matter what we're going to do to him?!" Grant yelled, "for all we know, he deserves it!"

Stephano went silent, apparently humbled by Grant's sudden confidence.

"Did we deserve it though?" Phil's voice broke the silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92 
> 
> \-- Teddy Citil; lawyer of the deceased and other related characters belong to me.


	11. Channel 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teddy comtemplates his cat and actually gets somewhere in life.

Chapter 11-- Channel 8

It was supper time when Teddy woke up. He grumbled in discomfort as he had been laying on his arm. 

His work clothes were wrinkly. He made a note to iron them twice before work in the morning. 

Teddy stood up, checking his cellphone for texts, which weren't there. He walked towards the small kitchen, stopping when his cat, Angelo brushed against his legs.

Angelo was a fat, fluffy thing. His ears were big and his tail bushy. Teddy had adopted Angelo from the local shelter a few years prior, and overall the two got along pretty well, aside from Angelo getting huffy whenever Teddy forgot to refill his food bowl.

He picked up the white cat, glad for it's company. He smiled, carrying it back to the couch and setting it on the cushion before heading back to the kitchen.

He lived alone, aside from Angelo, and he was just fine with it. He had no interest in marrying off, and had no plans of doing so.

Teddy brushed prematurely grey hair from his face and set to work on making some sort of meal. He gathered ingredients; two eggs, milk and cheese.

He put a frying pan on the stove and let it heat on low. He cracked the eggs into a plastic bowl and added milk and cheese, using the whisk to mix everything.

He sighed in a strange calm as he poured the mixture onto the pan. Angelo stalked back into the kitchen and leapt to the counter, which Teddy promptly removed him from.

Watching the egg cook, he flipped it when it seemed ready and after making sure it was cooked, shut off the stove and slid the makeshift omelette onto a plate. 

He opened the fridge to get some juice, but then realized he didn't have any, so he instead settled for water.

He went back to the living room, Angelo following, and the two of them settled on the couch. 

He grabbed the remote and the TV flickered on. He groaned at the caption for the local news.

'Richard Citil; brother of famous lawyer Edward Citil, primary suspect in Larenov homicide case.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angelo though lol
> 
> \-- goodbye, rosalinawysteria92


	12. Wonder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil's question and Teddy gets a request.
> 
> First duel-POV chapter.

Chapter 12-- Wonder

 

The room went silent at Phil's question.

"Are we bad people?" He breathed.

Grant crossed his arms, Stephano grumbled something incoherent.

Esproc was the next to speak, "No, I suppose you're not." He stated flatly, "but if any of you three turn on me again, there will be consequences."

Phil stared at his feet, "why did you pick us?" He mumbled softly, "what makes us so special?"

Esproc smiled in a semi-intimidating way making Phil feel small, "Mr. Larenov-- you and Mr. Evarg were just coincidence, nothing makes you special," he chuckled, "as you probably already are aware of, Mr. Latipsoh was the easiest one of my team to pick off."

Stephano rolled his eyes in indignation, "Go on, tell them why that is, why don't you?"

..........................................................

Teddy turned off the Television as soon as he saw the headline, having had enough of that mess.

He put the empty plate on the table and finished up his glass of water. 

Angelo clambered over the cushions to place himself on Teddy's lap, preventing the man from moving. Teddy sighed, lifting the heavy cat off of him.

That's when he heard a knock on the door. He cautiously peeked out the window and saw a police car.

He hurriedly opened the door and was greeted by an overweight, moustached officer.

"Edward Citil?" He grumbled, half interested, half bored.

"Yes." Teddy responded, "what's going on?"

"We were doing a driveby and noticed your car was here. We just got word from the station that your brother wants to see you."

"He's in custody already?" Teddy gasped, "I thought he was only a suspect!"

"Fingerprints don't lie, sir, but we are continuing our investigation. Now, we can escort you to the station, or should I inform your brother that you do not wish to see him?"

"I'll come," Teddy blurted, stepping outside and shutting the door.

"You can sit in the back." The officer stated.

"But I'm not--"

"The back."

Teddy climbed into the back of the cruiser, but unlike Richard, he wasn't guilty.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	13. A Reason

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Necessary questions and Richard's plea.

Chapter 13-- A Reason

 

Esproc rolled his eyes, "If you want to hear it," he smirked, "you were the easiest to pick off, because you're the one that nobody cared about."

"And why is that?" Stephano crossed his arms tighter.

"You already know the answer."

"But we don--" Grant was cut off when Esproc shushed him.

"You three need to start your job," Esproc commanded, "but there's no use in starting now, as it would be hard to track Edward while he's in his workplace," Esproc stated, not being aware that Teddy wasn't at work.

Phil yawned, "I'm tired!" He exclaimed.

"It's four in the afternoon," Esproc stated bitterly, "you'll manage."

That's when Grant asked a very important question, "do we need to sleep?"

Esproc thought for a moment, "Probably, if you're tired."

......................

The Police cruiser pulled up to the station. Teddy was allowed out of the backseat and he breathed in the outside air; the car had been musty. 

He sighed as he and the officer walked towards the station. It was fairly large with huge shrubs lining the white brick building.

They entered. It was small and cramped, but it seemed happy; about as happy as a police station could be.

The lights were bright. Teddy didn't like it, and half felt bad for his brother who had to stay here. 

"Right this way," the officer directed, leading Teddy down the hall. 

They reached a door that had a small window in it. 

The officer turned on a speaker, "mr. Citil, your brother is here to see you."

Through the window, Teddy noticed his brother perk up from where he was sitting on a cot. Richard was rather unkempt; his hair matted and wild. He was a very small man, never having really eaten enough to gain weight.

"Teddy?" He squeaked, "I'm so glad you're here!" He didn't look glad, in fact, he looked sad and sleep deprived, his eyes were wet with dark circles underneath. 

"Hi, Richard..." Teddy greeted softly into the speaker, "How are you..... doing?"

Richard looked at his feet, "fine," he mumbled. 

"Why did you do it?" Teddy questioned, Richard looked straight at him. Teddy shifted uncomfortably.

"I didn't kill him, Teddy." Richard suddenly sobbed, "I am being framed!"

"Your fingerprints were on the gun at the scene of the crime." Teddy countered, "unless someone copied your fingerprints, I don't know what to say."

"And what if someone did copy them?" Richard cried, "then what?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Figure out the mystery
> 
> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	14. The State vs Richard Citil

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Many different POVs

Chapter 14-- The State vs Richard Citil

 

"I don't know." Teddy's voice cut through the silence. He turned to the officer, "Can the fingerprints be scanned again?"

"Yes, but it's surely a lost cause-- the scans are rarely wrong."

"It's essential to the case." Teddy stated. He turned back to Richard, "You do realize that if they find you guilty, I am your prosecutor?"

"You are?" Richard gasped, "then whoever is guilty will be brought to good justice."

"I hope so, and I sorely hope you aren't lying when you say you're innocent."

"Time's up." The officer placed a hand on Teddy's shoulder.

"Bye, Teddy..." Richard spoke softly, "I love you."

"Love you too, Richard," Teddy responded, "I'm sure everything will turn out fine."

......................................................

Phil had fallen asleep at one of the desks, and Esproc didn't bother waking him up, as he'd be no use if he was overtired.

Esproc had returned to his office, leaving Grant and Stephano with the sleeping Phil.

Grant had decided to snoop through one of the desk drawers, which led to him finding a black sharpie.

He walked to Phil's sleeping form, he opened the marker.

Stephano had gone back to his novel, but his nose twitched when he smelled the pungent scent of the sharpie. He locked eyes with Grant.

"Don't you dare." He warned.

..............

Esproc grumbled and wrote something on his clipboard. He hadn't thought of the inevitable conclusion that Stephano would most likely flip on him. 

If only he could tweak memories-- but that was impossible without knowing extreme amounts of knowledge about brain surgery-- which he didn't have.

He sighed.

...................

The officer dropped Teddy back at his house. Teddy walked towards the door and unlocked it, stepping inside he was greeted by a clear line of sight to Angelo sitting smugly on the kitchen counter. 

Teddy rolled his eyes, too lazy to actually deal with the problem.

If Richard wasn't guilty, who was? And if he was guilty, did Teddy have the guts to prosecute him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was extremely short, sorry.
> 
> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	15. Literal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why Phil is sleepy, and Stephano tries to be social.

Chapter 15-- Literal

 

Stephano glared at Grant. The other man held an opened sharpie.

Stephano sighed, glancing to Phil and then back to Grant, "I swear, if you draw on him..."

"What are you gonna do?" Grant taunted, "tattle on me?"

"I-- no," Stephano paused, "look, I'd say go ahead if he wasn't a good person, but Phil's nice."

Grant closed the sharpie, "fine, but I'm bored."

"Read." Stephano pointed to a bookshelf at the front of the room.

"I don't read," Grant stated, "I mean, I can read, but not for fun--"

"Sleep, or something. Unlike you, I can read for fun, which I'm trying to do."

"You're salty." Grant looked up at one of the security cameras, "do you reckon it's off?"

Stephano ignored Grant's question, returning to his book. He honestly didn't find it interesting, but it was better than being bothersome like Grant was being.

That was when Phil woke up. He yawned and ruffled his already messy hair. He blinked in confusion, probably trying to figure out where he was, but then the realization seemed to hit him and he looked to Stephano.

He yawned again, "What time is it?" 

Before Stephano or Grant could respond, Phil was out again.

Grant looked at Stephano for answers, "what's up with him?" 

Stephano thought for a moment, "Probably some sort of brain damage. I mean, he was shot in the head."

"Oh." Grant looked at his feet, "How did you--"

"Poison." Stephano sharply responded.

"Oh, in you food or--"

Stephano rose his eyebrows, "is it really that important?"

"No, I guess not."

"You died from blunt force trauma, correct?"

"Yeah, I think," Grant thought for a second, "I was hit with a shovel, but I remember lying on the ground, and then I woke up here... how did I end up here??"

"An elaborate heist involving a car chase and a knife fight."

Grant's face went blank before Stephano let out a laugh.

"No, we just remotely disabled all the alarms at the morgue and brought you and Phil here."

"You have a sense of humour," Grant smiled, half ignoring the explanation.

"Yes, and you have the ability to carry on a conversation for more than ten seconds."

Grant pouted, "I could say the same thing, sarcastically, about you."

Stephano grunted, in a mild respect for the other man, "Don't push it."

They both smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	16. I am Alive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Grant decides to disregard a warning.

Chapter 16-- I am Alive

 

When Phil woke up again, his head really, really, hurt. His vision was blurry too. 

He knew that there was probably some permanent damage to his head from when he got shot, and was grateful that it wasn't worse, but it would still affect him.

Stephano and Grant noticed Phil wake up. He sat in the chair waiting for his vision to clear a slight bit.

"How long have I been sleeping?" He asked with a yawn.

Stephano was the one to respond, "an hour or so."

"Oh." 

Phil stood up, vision having cleared slightly, and wobbled towards the other two, sitting down at a closer desk.

"We were talking about death," Grant explained, "you got shot, right?"

Phil nodded, "over some friendly pen-pal letters," he frowned, "the guy thought they were love letters for his wife."

"Oh, I got whacked with a shovel by a drunk guy. Yours is like 10 times more dramatic."

"Any dreams?" Stephano blurted suddenly, looking to Phil.

Phil shook his head. He had probably had dreams, but none were memorable enough to mention.

"I'm hungry." Grant stated, "do you think Dr. What's his face has food?"

"There's food in the staff fridge." Stephano informed him, "but I don't suggest leaving this room until six o'clock when all of the employees have left."

"I'm hungry now, and I'm going to get food." Grant ignored Stephano's warning and waltzed out the door.

"He's going to get himself punched." Stephano lamented, "I'll go after him, people will at least not question me. You stay here."

Phil nodded in understanding.

Stephano laid down him book at stood up, walking to the door and into the hall.

He saw Grant turn the corner at the end and hurried after him, just in time to bump into his colleague, Dr. Karen Elliot.

"Hi!" She greeted, "I've been looking for you all day, did you come in late?"

"No." Stephano grumbled, "Look, Karen, love to stay and chat, but I'm in the middle of something."

He hurried away, leaving Karen to stare, dumbfounded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	17. The Staff Fridge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karen and her annoying traits.

Chapter 17-- The Staff Fridge

 

Grant opened the door to what he hoped was the staff room-- I mean, the door was labeled "STAFF ONLY".

He peeked in. It was empty (thank goodness). He strolled in, looking around. It was half-decent for a break room, but not too over the top. He made his way to the fridge, opening it and smiling.

He figured some of the staff probably left their lunch there for the next day. He was right.

He grabbed a veggie sandwich and got a glass which he filled with tap water. 

All of a sudden, the door flew open and Stephano burst in, seething.

"I told you not to leave the room!" He growled, Grant rolled his eyes.

"You and Dr What's His Face have to lighten up!" Grant laughed, Stephano huffed.

"You're going to get yourself caught! And you're a mess, you don't even mildly look like you should be here!"

"I am not a mess," Grant grumbled, "I just--"

"Oh, stop it." Stephano stomped forward, grabbed Grant's hand and directed him back towards the door. Luckily, Grant had grabbed the sandwich, but had to leave his cup of water.

When they got into the hall, the two men began to carefully make their way back to the room.

Unluckily for Stephano, he once again ran into Karen Elliot.

"Hi again, Steph!" She greeted, Grant stifled a laugh at the nickname.

"Hello Karen." Stephano grumbled.

"Who's this lovely young man," she looked to Grant, who blushed bright red at the compliment.

Stephano didn't miss a beat, "This is Dr Greg Eve." He made up the name on the spot, "He's visiting from Michigan."

"Nice to meet you," Karen held out her hand, "I'm Dr Karen Elliot."

Grant shook her hand, that's when she noticed the sandwich. 

"Isn't that my--" she was cut off.

"Sorry, to cut it short Karen, but Dr Eve and I really need to get to work!" He grabbed Grant's hand again and pulled him away, hustling back to the room.

They locked the door behind them, Phil looked up from where he'd been flipping through a textbook.

Grant let out a laugh, startling Stephano, "She called you Steph!"

"And? Karen makes an effort to connect to her co-workers. You act like you didn't turn cherry when she asked your name."

"Who's Karen? Did I miss something?" Phil pondered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- Rosalinawysteria92


	18. Esproc and his Ideas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Esproc contemplates.

Chapter 18-- Esproc and his Ideas

 

Esproc smiled to himself while he read over the files on his computer screen. He had files on almost every person in town, as he had managed to get access to the government database.

He scrolled through a few of the files, reading each file name...

Armando Esproc  
Artemis Quinn  
Bertram McLaine  
Brandon Knuro  
Destiney McLaine  
Edward Citil  
Grant Evarg  
Karen Elliot  
Maria Latipsoh  
Michaela Lavoreau  
Phillip Larenov  
Richard Citil  
Stephano Latipsoh  
Trina London

He clicked on Edward Citil's file; a barrage of information popped up.

Name: Citil, Edward Leanne  
Age: 38 years, 9 months, 8 days  
Gender: Male  
Status: Alive  
Marital Status: Unmarried  
Address: 15 Alouette Ave

He excited the file, clicking into Richard Citil's file. He knew Richard was being held accountable for Phil's death, so it would be interesting to read up on him.

Name: Citil, Richard Elaine  
Age: 36 years, 8 months, 23 days  
Gender: Male  
Status: Alive, incarcerated.  
Marital Status: Married (Michaela Lavoreau)  
Address: N/A

A married, probably happy man would have no reason to kill, which meant the accusation was most likely false-- not that he cared. It would almost be ironic if an esteemed lawyer had a murderer for a brother.

On the topic of Edward Citil. He hadn't exactly fine tuned his plan yet. As far as he had figured, it would probably include convincing Phil, Grant, or Stephano to kill the lawyer, so Esproc could bring him back and have his personal glory.

That's when he heard loud laughter coming from outside. He grumbled, crossing the room. He opened the door and crossed the hall to where the three men were. He flung the door open and they looked up in surprise. 

"Would you three try to be quiet!" He growled, "you're supposed to be dead!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Halloween!!  
> Rosalinawysteria92


	19. Blue Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil's outburst.

Chapter 19-- Blue Sky

 

Esproc had managed to shut the three men up, and had made a food run, claiming that he didn't know they would need to eat. They feasted on fastfood, which probably wasn't the healthiest, and slept in the room, which Esproc locked behind him.

The next day came and Esproc showed up early to wake the other three. It was the day that they would start to track Teddy.

Stephano woke first, then Grant, but Phil just mumbled when they tried to wake him.

Esproc sighed, "Pathetic. Just pathetic..." he grumbled, "I knew there would be damage, but not like this."

Stephano crossed his arms, "He'll probably wake up in a few minutes, we should let him be."

"Or just leave him here and we'll track Edward-What's his face without him." Grant added.

"Not possible. If he's here alone, he will get bored and leave the room, probably get caught, and someone would recognize him," Esproc said pointedly.

"I have an idea," Grant grinned.

He walked out of the room, to the confusion of the other two. He returned a few moments later carrying a cup of water from the staff room.

"You wouldn't--" Stephano started.

"Watch me." All of a sudden, he tipped the cup and drenched Phil's hair in ice cold water.

That's when Phil's hand shot out and shoved him. Phil looked up, Grant stumbled.

Phil yawned, not noticing his violent response. Esproc's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

Grant stood up and started laughing, "I didn't think it would really work!"

"Did you pour water on me?" Questioned Phil.

"Yes. He did." Stephano responded sourly, "and he deserved what he got."

"Wait, what??"

Stephano sighed, "he woke you up and you pretty much punched him."

"Oh." He looked sheepishly to Grant, who was still laughing, "sorry.."

"No problem, it was my fault anyway." Grant smiled, "I didn't think you'd wake up at all from it, we've been trying to wake you for like ten minutes now."

"I was tired," Phil objected, "It's still early."

"And you three have work to do." Esproc reminded them, "You're going to go to McLaine and Citil Law firm, that is where Edward works. You will watch him from there."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	20. Words Will Never Hurt Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil takes matters into his own hands

Chapter 20-- Words Will Never Hurt Me

By six-thirty AM, Esproc drove the three to the 24-hour store. He left them in the car, bought a massive amount of makeup and three pairs of non-prescription glasses, and returned to the car to find Grant messing around with the radio.

Esproc sighed and hit the power button on the radio. He then handed the bag of makeup to Stephano, "All three of you, put it on." He directed, "once you're done, I'll drive you to Edward's workplace and leave you all there."

The three began to layer on the makeup. Esproc rolled his eyes and smiled to himself as he looked in the rear view mirror, noticing Phil fumbling with the foundation, which Stephano began to help him with.

Grant's makeup was probably the worst. The foundation was all caked and made him look older than he actually was, and he had attempted to do a smoky-eye-- which did not turn out to the desired effect and made him look sleep deprived. 

"Dr Esproc?" Phil blurted, "why do they think that some Richard Citil guy killed me?? Is he related to Edward Citil?"

Esproc whipped around, "who told you about that?"

"We heard it on the radio while you were in the store," stated Stephano.

"Oh.." Esproc thought for a moment, "they found his fingerprints at the scene of your death. He is Edward's brother."

"That's not right," Phil's expression was clouded, "I've never had a 'Richard' in my house. The guy who killed me was named Alexander Heath...or at least I think so.."

"My sister's husband.." Stephano lamented, "sounds about right."

"I don't care who killed you." Esproc hissed, "Whatever you do, do not tell anyone who killed you."

"But why--"

"Don't." Esproc warned, starting the car and pulling out of the parking lot. The drive to the law firm was silent.

Esproc left the three in the parking lot of the law firm. 

That's when Grant noticed something extremely vital to their venture.

"Do we even know what this guy looks like?"

Phil shrugged, looking paler than usual from the makeup.

"I know who he is," Stephano offered, "Esproc has documents on him, I've seen it. It's like an obcession of his. Edward Citil is probably like, 38ish, and has super grey hair, and has really pale skin with freckles."

"Do we go in?" Phil asked.

"No. It doesn't matter what he does in there, we just have to follow him when he comes out." Stephano explained.

"So we have to sit here until he shows up, wait until he leaves for lunch and then follow him home later?" Grant questioned, "boring."

"I don't want to do it either, but then again, I don't want to be dead-- but here we are." Stephano grumbled.

Cars began to roll into the parking lot, and the three scrambled behind a few shrubs. Then Stephano noticed Teddy.

"See, that's him." He pointed to the man walking into the building.

"He's kinda dorky looking." Grant laughed.

"Says the guy who made himself look like an actual zombie with eyeshadow," Stephano rolled his eyes. 

"Touché." 

A few hours passed and the three stayed huddled behind the bushes. That's when lunchtime rolled around and Teddy strolled outside, walking past the bushes where the three were.

"I need to go to the bathroom." Phil blurted, "you guys go without me."

He strode to the building, much to the dismay of the others, who exchanged a glance before beginning to trail Teddy.

Phil walked into the building, stopping at the front desk. The receptionist raised her eyebrows in boredom.

"Where's the washroom?" Phil asked, "I would very much like to go there."

She pointed to the long hallway. Phil began to walk, but he didn't go to the bathroom. Instead he found the door labled 'Edward Citil'. It wasn't locked, he walked in. 

He lifted the pen from Teddy's desk and grabbed a sheet of looseleaf. 

He knew that Teddy was his lawyer, Esproc had told him.

He did the most he could do without disobeying Esproc. He scribbled a blurb on the paper;

'Richard Citil was not complicit in the murder of Phillip Larenov.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When your chapters are 300 words long and you accidentally write one that's almost 700


	21. The Trail

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teddy notices something iffy.

Chapter 21-- The Trail

 

There was really no reason for Teddy to feel uncomfortable, but he was anyway. He couldn't help it, the two men behind him were overbearing and he felt like he might be jumped-- an odd possibility in broad daylight.

He took a sharp glance at them. They had been following him since he left the law firm. One had light brown hair and some very odd makeup, and the other looked Italian. 

Teddy clutched his lunchbag harder, speeding up his pace. He was heading to the town park to eat, and hoped the two men would veer off somewhere. 

There was also the possibility that he was just being paranoid, but that was a slim chance. He had learned to think critically, and deduced that the men were definitely being suspicious.

The park was in sight, so Teddy kept walking and the men kept following him. They walked into the park. 

Teddy sat down on one of the benches. The men walked past him. He breathed a sigh of relief.

.....

Stephano knew Phil probably wouldn't try to catch up, so he and Grant kept walking, hoping to do a loop around the park before Teddy headed back-- but if they were a bit late, he assumed that Teddy would be returning to the law firm anyway.

Grant grumbled, "why did we walk past him?"

"What did you expect us to do?!" Stephano hissed, "walk up to him and say our greetings?"

Grant though for a moment, "well, no, but we don't know when he goes back from lunch, or even if he makes any stops beforehand!"

"That's the most sense you've made all morning," Stephano chuckled, "too bad I can't take you seriously with your bad facepaint."

"Oh quit it." 

"But really. I figure his lunch is only half an hour, considering he probably has a tight schedule. If he took ten minutes to walk here, ten minutes to walk back and ten minutes to eat, we can circle the park and head back to his workplace with time to spare."

Grant nodded in a begrudging understanding, "sure, I guess."

"Any better plans?" Stephano questioned. Grant was silent, Stephano continued, "then we go with my idea."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back to the short chapters.   
> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	22. Rewind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil is kinda peculiar

Chapter 22-- Rewind

 

Phil sighed, he didn't suppose it would be worth it to try and catch up to the others. He walked out of the building, the receptionist barely looked up. He kept walking towards a bench as the edge of the property, sitting down and twiddling his thumbs as he waited for Stephano and Grant to return.

Phil wondered where the others had gone, and when they would come back. He assumed they'd be back shortly, as Teddy probably had a short lunch break. He looked up at the sky, which was laden with dark clouds.

That's when it began to pour, he groaned and ran to a tree for a shred of shelter.

.......

Grant hissed when he felt a drop of rain. He and Stephano exchanged a glance when it began to downpour. They began to jog back towards the bench, just in time to see Teddy walking back to the law firm.

They sped up and passed Teddy so they wouldn't look suspicious. As they walked by, Grant noticed the lawyer nervously glance up. When their gazes met, both quickly looked back to the ground.

After a few minutes, they arrived back at Teddy's work. Stephano spotted Phil curled underneath a tree, shivering from the chilly rain. 

They headed up to him. Grant plopped down on the slippery grass beside Phil and nudged the man, who tiredly acknowledged him.

Stephano crossed his arms, watching Teddy head into the building, "I don't expect him to be back out soon."

"And? We just sit in the rain?" Grant grumbled, "our makeup will wash away!"

"We can go to the public library, but we'll have to keep a low profile so nobody gets recognized."

With that, Grant grabbed Phil's arm and hauled him up.

Phil pulled away, still shivering, but not liking being touched.

They walked to the library, as fast as possible to try and dodge the rain.

The entered the heavy glass doors and warmth washed over them.

The librarian looked up, staring at Phil as if she had seen a ghost.

They walked past her, to the back of the library, where they settled at a table. 

Phil suddenly whispered, "I think I was recognized."

Stephano sighed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	23. The Danger

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Phil has a realization

Chapter 23-- The Danger

 

"What do you mean, you got recognized?!" Stephano whispered angrily, "by who?"

Phil looked distressed, he obviously didn't enjoy Stephano being angry at him, "the librarian, we used to talk a lot.."

"And you didn't mention this beforehand, why?" Grant grumbled, "sheesh, you're worse than I am!"

"I didn't think to mention it, I'm sorry!" Phil pouted.

Stephano sighed, "it's... fine. If anything she'll just think she saw a lookalike. Just don't look at her when we exit."

Phil nodded in embarrassed understanding. He looked at the floor.

Grant changed the subject, "so what if it's still raining by the time we're supposed to follow that lawyer guy home at?"

"I guess we go anyway?" Stephano offered, "there's really no other option."

"What if we called dr. Esproc and got him to come pick us up to take us to mr. Citil's home?" Phil asked meekly, "surely he knows the adress?"

"Not possible," Stephano decided, "he took my cellphone and I don't know his number off the top of my head. He also can't leave the institute in the middle of the day-- he has scheduled lectures."

Phil frowned, feeling useless, "can I go look at books?" He pondered.

Stephano thought for a moment, "don't go near anyone who might recognize you."

Phil nodded and stood up, pushing the chair in. He left the other two men at the table and proceeded towards the section with the novels. 

He grabbed one off the shelf and tried to read the description, but it just looked like a jumble of failure. He grumbled. So he could read some things, such as the textbook in the institute, but couldn't read others, like the book. And he could still write perfectly normal. 

But as he thought about it, when he'd had the textbook, he'd really only been looking at the pictures.   
His writing was a different story altogether-- maybe it wasn't as normal as Phil thought it was. 

He put the book on the shelf, slumped to the floor, and began to cry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	24. Inner City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teddy finds a note

Chapter 24-- Inner City

 

Grant knew Phil was probably a bit frazzled, but he didn't actually expect the man would start crying in the middle of the library.

He understood that he and Stephano probably could have been a bit nicer, but he couldn't help feeling a bit angry at Phil. Not everything had to centre around the sweet man.

He walked up to the other man and tapped lightly kicked his leg. Phil mumbled and glanced up. 

"Stop crying, it's not always about you," Grant grumbled.

Phil looked away, staring at the floor, "Yeah, well it isn't about you either," he snapped, "I'm allowed to cry."

And with that, Grant teared up too.

.......

Teddy shuddered as he arrived back at his work. When the younger of the two men had met his eyes, that had been the most disturbing moment of his life. There was something inhuman in those eyes... but he didn't know what.

He headed into his office, and sat down at his desk. There, in the middle of all the papers, sat one with a message messily scrawled on it.

It certainly didn't say what Phil thought it said--

'Ricad Citi was nat conplicil ln th murdr of Philip Larnov.'

Teddy stared at the note. Obviously the writer couldn't spell.

Teddy reread it and put together the words:

''Richard Citil was not complicit in the murder of Phillip Larenov.''

Teddy went silent. There was no way a note like this could be used in court, but at least it gave him hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- rosalinawysteria92


	25. Moments until Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Major Chapter.

Chapter 25-- Moments until realization

 

Stephano stumbled upon Grant and Phil. He had been looking for novels inspired by science, and had found a few, though he wouldn't sign them out-- that would compromise their identities. 

He sighed when he found the two other men. Both looked like they had been crying, but had stopped. They were just sitting there blank faced, staring at the bookshelves.

Grant looked up when he noticed Stephano. He nudged Phil, who looked up as well.

"The rain stopped," Stephano remarked, "we should go back to the law firm. I suppose that dr. Esproc will pick us up there, considering he already knows where Mr. Citil lives."

Grant and Phil stood up and they began to walk towards the door.

"Don't look at anyone," Stephano grumbled to Phil, "the last thing we need is someone seeing someone who's supposed to be dead."

Phil grunted and looked down as they exited the building, walking back to Teddy's workplace.

When they got there, the parking lot was full of puddles and the three men tiptoed through, trying not to get any wetter. They settled behind a bush, kneeling on the muddy ground. 

"What time is it?" Grant grumbled.

"Four thirty," Stephano informed them, "I checked at the library. Since the average work day ends at five o'clock, we will just stay here until then-- when Esproc picks us up."

Grant and Phil nodded.

The next half an hour was a long one for the three men sitting on the muddy ground. They watched Teddy exit the building at five

They were interrupted when Esproc drove up, motioning for them to get in the vehicle.

"You couldn't have been easier to spot." He remarked, "No matter. I find that this plan is moving too slowly."

"So?" Grant questioned, "what do we do about it?"

"I'm going to drop you off on Alouette Avenue. Edward lives at house number fifteen. You will watch his house and when you're sure it's clear, you will enter through the basement window and terminate him."

"You want us to kill him?!" Phil gasped. He went to say something else, but it just came out as a frightened squeak.

"I'm not going to help with that." Stephano said flatly, "I'm not going to kill an innocent man."

"Fine." 

All the others looked to the source of the voice; Grant.

"I'll kill Edward Citil," he frowned, "Then you'll bring him back, right?"

Esproc nodded, "there's something I have to prove to him, and it involves his being not exactly alive."

The rest of the drive was silent. Esproc left the three on the sidewalk of Alouette Avenue.

They looked for house fifteen. The car from the law firm was there.

The three exchanged glances, both Stephano and Phil now showed a resentment towards Grant.

30 minutes until death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- Rosalinawysteria92


	26. Minutes until Death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Major Chapter

Chapter 26-- Minutes until Death

 

30 minutes until death. 

It was still light outside, so the three men did their best to be stealthy as they snuck around to the back of house fifteen.

To be honest, Grant didn't want to hurt Teddy, but at least Esproc was going to bring the lawyer back to life, so there was no harm in it.

25 minutes until death.

Teddy picked Angelo up from where the cat was perched on the countertop. He frowned, still a bit shaken from the incident at lunch.

He was probably just paranoid, but he definitely thought those two men were following him. 

And the note on his desk? It wasn't useful enough to question the receptionist about any lunchtime visitors, but it certainly was curious.

20 minutes until death.

"You're going in alone." Stephano stated, "I'm not going to help with murder."

"Just keep watch." Grant grumbled, "Look, I'll try to do it quickly, I don't want to hurt him anymore than you do. I'm just worried about what dr what's his face would do if we refused."

Stephano sighed and Phil ignored him. Grant looked away. 

15 minutes until death.

Grant tried to be silent with shattering the tiny basement window. He kicked it in, probably not the most sneaky thing he could do. 

"Wish me luck," he spoke quietly before sliding carefully into the shadowy basement.

10 minutes until death.

Angelo heard the window break. He jumped from Teddy's embrace and pattered to the basement stairs. He made his way down when he heard another noise.

Footsteps. 

There was a man. Angelo hissed, the man squeaked in surprise. Angelo lunged at him. Grant kicked the cat, hard, and Angelo limply hit the floor-- not dead, but definitely out of commission.

8 minutes until death.

Grant slowly creaked up the stairs and peered into the hall. He could hear a hum and saw Teddy in the kitchen.

He made his way around the corner and slowly made his way towards the oblivious man. 

Teddy had his back turned when Grant struck. 

Grant pulled Teddy backwards by the back of his shirt. Teddy squeaked in shock, but didn't scream. He flailed and hit Grant, but didn't to any major damage. Grant tried to weaken Teddy by striking him in the face, but only managed to give him a bloody nose.

Grant pulled Teddy into a chokehold and Teddy gasped, trying to pull away. A futile effort.

Grant just held on tighter. He could feel Teddy going limp. The man was blue in the face when he finally fell unconscious. 

Grant dropped the body to the floor. 

4 minutes until death.

Grant searched the kitchen drawer for some kind of weapon, wanting to make Teddy's death as painless as possible.

He settled on a sharp knife.

2 minutes until death

Grant held the blade to Teddy's throat. He hoped Teddy wouldn't wake up during his death-- Grant didn't think he could bear it. 

1 minute until death 

Grant was horribly wrong. Teddy woke up as Grant sharply sliced the delicate skin on his neck. 

Teddy's eyes went wide in a terrible shock and Grant began to cry.

"Please go back to sleep!" Grant cried, staring into Teddy's eyes.

Blood bubbled from the throat wound and Teddy made a terrible noise. A noise of desperation and pain. A noise that Grant couldn't handle.

"I'm sorry!!" 

Grant jabbed the knife into Teddy's abdomen and Teddy gasped, and then went silent and still.

Death.

Grant hadn't wanted to do it, really.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- Rosalinawysteria92


	27. The Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A knock at the door.

Chapter 27-- The Aftermath

 

Grant did regret what he did, but it didn't mean much. 

He made his way back to the basement, stepping past Angelo's small form. 

He peered up through the shattered window, up to the other two men.

"Come on," he grumbled, "It's done. We may as well just call Dr What's his face to pick us up.."

Stephano grunted and made his way through the window with Phil following suit.

They were silent. Grant knew they were upset over the whole situation.

"Do you guys hate me?" He breathed.

Phil and Stephano exchanged a glance.

"I--" Stephano began, he was cut off by a exclamation from Phil.

"Is that a cat?!" Phil scrambled over to Angelo and scooped him up, cradling the fluffy pet, "did you do this?!" He snarled, more angry than Grant had ever seen him.

"Accidentally," explained Grant, "look, I think he's still alive. He jumped at me and I kicked him, it wasn't intentional.."

Phil murmured something under his breath, holding Angelo tightly.

"Where is the body?" Stephano questioned, "If you've done something like this to a cat, I'd hate to see what you did to mr. Citil."

"This way," Grant muttered, guiding them upstairs, he brought them into the kitchen, "see?!"

Teddy's limp body lay in a spreading pool of blood on the tile floor.

Phil gasped and immediately turned away, going to sit on the couch in the living room.

Stephano knelt down beside the body, examining the fatal wounds, "why'd you cut him twice?" 

"I.." Grant paused, "I didn't want it to take too long, he woke up and I didn't know what to do, so I stabbed him and you hate me, don't you?!"

"I don't agree with murder, but I don't believe you wanted to do it either. Let's call Dr Esproc."

Grant nodded, "There's probably a phone in the living room."

The two walked to the room where Phil was sitting with Angelo. Stephano picked up a phone, thinking for a long moment before dialling a number.

"Yes, you know exactly who this is," Stephano snapped into the phone, "Just come pick us up, we'll let you in the front door." He hung up, "Dr Esproc will be here in ten minutes."

"I think the kitty is fine," Phil offered, "and his name's Angelo, his collar says so."

Grant picked up a piece of paper from the coffee table and read it aloud, "Richard Citil was not complicit in the murder of Phillip Larenov," he looked to Phil, who looked to his feet, mumbling something, "you know something about this, don't you?"

Phil nodded, "I kind of wrote it and put it on mr Citil's desk when I told you guys I had to go to the washroom..."

"You realize how much trouble we could get in with Esproc for that?!" Stephano exclaimed, "He told you not to tell anyone who killed you!"

"I followed his rule, I only said who didn't do it," Phil mumbled, "Please don't give him the note."

Grant rolled his eyes, "fine."

Stephano nodded slowly, "I won't tell, don't worry."

Angelo mewed and Phil smiled at the waking cat, patting it's head, "thank you," he breathed.

Then came a loud knock at the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Goodbye-- Rosalinawysteria92

**Author's Note:**

> ...


End file.
